Shitoku (至徳) was a Japanese era name (年号, ''nengō'', lit. year name) of the

Northern Court The , also known as the Ashikaga Pretenders or Northern Pretenders, were a set of six pretenders to the throne of Japan during the Nanboku-chō period from 1336 through 1392. The present Imperial House of Japan is descended from the Northern Cou ...

during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after Eitoku and before

Kakei Kakei (嘉慶) was a Japanese era name (年号, ''nengō'', lit. year name) of the Northern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after Shitoku and before Kōō. This period spanned the years from August 1387 to February 1389. The ...

. This period spanned the years from February 1384 to August 1387. The emperor in Kyoto was The Southern Court rival in Yoshino during this time-frame was .

Nanboku-chō overview

During the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

, an Imperial decree dated March 3, 1911 established that the legitimate reigning monarchs of this period were the direct descendants of

Emperor Go-Daigo Emperor Go-Daigo (後醍醐天皇 ''Go-Daigo-tennō'') (26 November 1288 – 19 September 1339) was the 96th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'')後醍醐天皇 (96) retrieved 2013-8-28. according to the traditional order ...

through

Emperor Go-Murakami (1328 – March 29, 1368) was the 97th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession, and a member of the Southern Court during the Nanboku-chō period of rival courts. He reigned from September 18, 1339, until March 29, 13 ...

, whose had been established in exile in

Yoshino Yoshino may refer to: * Yoshino cherry, another name for ''Prunus × yedoensis'', a flowering cherry tree * Japanese cruiser Yoshino, Japanese cruiser ''Yoshino'', a protected cruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy Places * Yoshino, Nara, a town ...

, near Nara.Thomas, Julia Adeney. (2001)
''Reconfiguring modernity: concepts of nature in Japanese political ideology'', p. 199 n57
citing Mehl, Margaret. (1997). ''History and the State in Nineteenth-Century Japan.'' p. 140-147. Until the end of the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characte ...

, the militarily superior pretender-Emperors supported by the

Ashikaga shogunate The , also known as the , was the feudal military government of Japan during the Muromachi period from 1336 to 1573.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Muromachi-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 669. The Ashikaga shogunate was establi ...

had been mistakenly incorporated in Imperial chronologies despite the undisputed fact that the Imperial Regalia were not in their possession. This illegitimate had been established in

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

Ashikaga Takauji was the founder and first '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Murom ...

. Southern Court Equivalents:

Genchū Genchū (元中) was a Japanese era of the Southern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts lasting from April 1384 to October 1392.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Genchū''" i ''Japan encyclopedia,'' p. 236 n.b., Louis-Fréd ...

Change of era

* 1384, also called : The new era name was created to mark an event or series of events. The previous era ended and the new one commenced in ''Eitoku'' 4. In this time frame,

(1384–1393) was the Southern Court equivalent ''nengō.''Titsingh, p. 317.

Events of the Shitoku era

* 1384 (''Shitoku 1, 3rd month''): Shōgun

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was the third '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate, ruling from 1368 to 1394 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimitsu was Ashikaga Yoshiakira's third son but the oldest son to survive, his childhood name being Haruō (). Yoshimitsu ...

gave up his court position as General of the Left (''sadaish''). * 1385 (''Shitoku 2, 8th month''): Yoshimistu made a public visit to Kasuga-taisha. * 1385 (''Shitoku 2''): Southern army defeated at

Koga KOGA is a Dutch bicycle manufacturer based in Heerenveen, Friesland. The company is known for its long time partnership with Japanese frame manufacturer Miyata, producing bicycles and sponsoring racing teams under the brand name Koga Miyata. As ...

.Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982) ''Lessons from History: The "Tokushi Yoron"'', p. 329. * 1386 (''Shitoku 3, 7th month''): Yoshimitsu authorized the Five Mountain System for ranking state-sponsored Buddhist temples; and

Nanzen-ji , or Zuiryusan Nanzen-ji, formerly , is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan. Emperor Kameyama established it in 1291 on the site of his previous detached palace. It is also the headquarters of the Nanzen-ji branch of Rinzai Zen. The precincts ...

was ranked at the top and in a class of its own.Titsingh, Isaac. (1834)
''Annales des empereurs du japon'', p. 317.
/ref> * 1387-89: Dissension is growing in Toki family of

Mino Mino may refer to: Places in Japan * Mino, Gifu, a city in Gifu Prefecture * Mino, Kagawa, a former town in Kagawa Prefecture * Mino, Tokushima, a town in Tokushima Prefecture * Mino, an alternate spelling of Minoh, a city in Osaka Prefecture * Mi ...

Notes

References

* Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982) ''Lessons from History: The Tokushi Yoron.'' Brisbane: University of Queensland Press. * Mehl, Margaret. (1997). ''History and the State in Nineteenth-Century Japan.'' New York: St Martin's Press.
OCLC 419870136
* Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia.'' Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retir ...

.
OCLC 48943301
* Thomas, Julia Adeney. (2001). ''Reconfiguring Modernity: Concepts of Nature in Japanese Political Ideology.'' Berkeley:

University of California Press The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by facult ...

. ; * Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). '' Nihon Odai Ichiran''; ou
''Annales des empereurs du Japon.''
Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 5850691

External links

* National Diet Library, "The Japanese Calendar
-- historical overview plus illustrative images from library's collection
{{Japanese era name Japanese eras 1380s in Japan